Man of War
by Drones-of-Innocence
Summary: "If you become my faithful servants, then I will not harm you." Her voice was sweet poison. He was helpless to her. "I will serve you...My Queen."


O~o~O

"If you will become my faithful servants, I will not harm you."

Funny. Mario had been sure the floor was under his feet a moment ago. He blinked. The world had gone sideways, he thought? There was pressure on the side of his head. Something red and glowing up ahead. Eyes. Her eyes.

Pain. There was pain. He couldn't comprehend where or why.

"Mario!" he heard his name, right behind him. But at the same time, the voice was so far away. "Hey! Come on, get up! You have to get up!"

The shouting hurt his head. He tried to reach up, tried to cover his ears. The voices went on. "What have you done to him?! You evil witch!" The screams were grating, he wanted them to stop.

"Silence!" there was a thunderous, heavenly voice that came above the other. The relief was instant to Mario. He relaxed. "Insolent brat. Let this being speak."

He could feel himself moving. Up? On his feet, maybe. Head tilted. "Tell me, Mario," that wonderful voice came again, and he let out a shaky breath when she purred his name. Then, the voice was right in his ear, sending delighted chills up his spine. "Will you serve me, or will you defy me?"

Mario wavered. He tried to find his voice, somewhere in his mind.

"I will...Serve you." he finally mumbled, and blinked slowly. "...My Queen."

There was a flash around him, and a whirl of darkness before those red eyes were right before him. "Oh, yes, you are obedient. Good, my pet…" she crooned, and he felt her touch his face. "Now you are mine. You will serve me for eternity."

"Mario! She has you under her spell! Please, Mario, snap out of it!" the screaming voice begged, and Mario cringed with pain.

Vivian. Her name was Vivian. For a moment, in his head, he thought he understood the fear and urgency of her cries. But the moment passed. He forgot why they were there. All that mattered was the Shadow Queen, who surrounded him and held him close.

"Don't you see?" the Queen hissed. "This being has such an incredible bond with the vessel I occupy. Turning his heart was simple. You would be wise to follow him, as you said you would." The timbre of her voice was low, soothing to him in a way he couldn't explain. He could hardly keep his eyes open.

The voice behind him said nothing more, and Mario was grateful. He sighed into the Queen's touch, her hand on his cheek, breathing her in because she was so close to him and he wanted nothing else. She chuckled, a dark, husky sound. Mario felt himself becoming lightheaded.

He was hers. Every inch of him belonged to her; he always had.

The days that passed fell in and out of Mario's awareness. He had the strangest sense that there had been something he was supposed to do. Something he needed to finish, like a quest or a job. There might have been people who he cared about who he didn't see anymore, but he didn't remember any of their names. He didn't think it mattered. The Queen was everything he wanted. And he served her, as loyal as he had always been to her. Always to her. His heart belonged to her and she knew it.

The halls of the castle were dim, the skies were always dark. He never noticed. Wherever he went, he felt like he was floating. Like his feet never quite touched the ground even though he could feel himself moving. He processed the world around him in a pleasant, cloudy haze.

"You want to sleep," she told him soon after darkness had consumed the world. "You want to rest until I need you."

He felt himself nod vaguely. "I want to...Sleep. I...want to rest…" he repeated. The words were hard to get out. But they were his own. Whatever she wanted, he wanted. Whatever he wanted, she gave to him. "Un...Until you need me…"

And then he was put to sleep. He never knew how long for; he could never find a timepiece anywhere. He didn't really care to look.

Mario was the Shadow Queen's most loyal soldier. He did whatever she told him to. Whatever she wanted. He carried out her every order without question, and he never failed her. He would never dream of failing her. He did not dream.

She did not call upon him often, but when she did, he would be awakened from his rest and sent to do her bidding. Raze this. Enforce that. Instigate the downfall of enemies. Put the people in their place. Turn their hearts toward the darkness.

The darkness was beautiful. He wanted to show them all, help them give into the shade, the purple fog. The sun had been blotted out. The air was so cold, but the external chill was nothing compared to the rush they would all feel once they understood her glorious power.

He was more than content to serve Her. He wanted the whole world to know the divine grace of his Queen.

Cities burned. Institutions crumbled. He took control of all the surrounding areas at her orders. Her power was supreme and her word was law. He would show them, piece by piece. The world would bow to the Queen. The resistance he met with was trivial; they couldn't possibly resist her. They would all fall in line.

She ordered him to wipe out the dissenters with his Firebrand. He walked through darkened streets, leaving flames in his wake. She commanded him to burn down anything in the way of her advance. He leveled the lands to her liking.

If the Queen wanted the planets aligned, he would do it for her.

When he returned to her, worn and weary, She would take him back to her room and stroke his hair and put him back to sleep again.

Her room was very big, he thought, he could never make out the entire place. Everything was always so dark in his eyes. There were shadows. The world he lived in was her bed and her bed was the most wonderful place to be. Soft and soothing. Warm and cozy.

The Queen smelled like night. He knew her presence when he breathed her heady twilight musk, full and intoxicating like wine. The scent always made his heart beat faster, and overwhelmed him enough to make his head have the slightest ache. Her skin was pale and cold like ceramic, but he didn't mind the chill of her touch. Her eyes bore into his with an intensity that he never wanted to break.

He knew that she did not sleep, but he tried to find his voice and ask for her to stay. His words were always muddled, and he could hardly understand himself.

In reply, she would always kiss him on the forehead and whisper to him. But he could hardly hear her because he was falling asleep and the world had faded to his senses.

"You're my man of war," she crooned, her icicle fingers petting his hair.

Her kiss crushed his consciousness, rolling him flat. "I am…" the words blended together in his head. He couldn't hear himself think. He couldn't think. "...man of…"

She smiled, he could just make out her figure from the fuzzy edges of his vision. "Yes, my darling. My sweet, sweet puppet." Her leer gleamed through the dark. Every single muscle in his body went lax in her arms.

He loved when she held him close, when his head rested upon her breast. His unseeing eyes would search for her, content himself with her blight and gloom. He couldn't move. He didn't want to move. She was there to put him to sleep, and she was there to awaken him. Anything that happened in between was inconsequential.

His hands were dirty. She cleaned them for him.

He looked forward to the moments between waking and sleeping, between sleeping and waking more than anything else in the entire world. Because that was when she was there. He tried to fight to stay awake, to be near her longer while he was aware. She would always win.

But sometimes, she would humor him. She would allow him the slightest amount of awareness, and sing for him while he lay there. Her voice was like moonlit mist. All at once profound and intangible. When he tried to move, she would dissipate in gaseous tendrils of fog and shadow. So he stayed still.

When he returned to her on particularly dark days, she would kiss him.

Her lips were so cold that they burned against his. His body's impulse was to jerk away, but his mind wanted more, wanted to be closer. Her kiss ignited every single one of his senses, froze his blood, short-circuited his nerves. Everything and nothing happened at the same time.

"Mm...My Queen…" his voice always became very small, practically a whimper. He could hardly form words. His body went reeling with pain. His mind filled with noise and silence. Static. Basic impulses and desires. She reduced him to a flickering light bulb with nothing but a kiss.

She would chuckle in his ear, raising goosebumps all over his skin and sending his heart to the races. Then, she would leave him there, buzzing and flickering, alone, to sleep. His mind always resisted at first. He was thinking far too much to sleep. But his body's exhaustion from handling her kiss would always win out. His thoughts were constantly at odds when she left, pain or pleasure, pain or pleasure. The battle happened so fast that the thoughts lost meaning. They started to blend together. Pain was pleasure. Pleasure was pain.

Whenever he saw her, or smelled her, or thought about her, he felt a jolt of fear and a rush of excitement simultaneously. His heart skipped a beat. He forgot how to breathe for several seconds at a time. He practically forgot his own name when she was there.

He wanted her. He was terrified of her. The only thing that mattered was her.

O~o~O

Mario woke up with a start.

The room was blue. The only light came through the window, he thought that was what was left of the sun. There were voices outside. None of them were hers. Whispers and murmurs out of his range of hearing, distant and murky like his own thoughts.

He tried to move his fingers. His hands weakly grasped the sheets around him, and he squinted up at the ceiling. She wasn't there. He couldn't sense her anywhere. His heart hammered with both relief and dread. Where was she? Why wasn't she with him?

"...Solstice approaches. The Light...At her peak." he heard someone speaking outside the door. There was a door? He struggled to tilt his head back and look around the room. His muscles were all exhausted and weak. How long had he been asleep for?

His skin was sheened with a cold sweat. He shivered, but he couldn't move enough to pull up the blankets. They wouldn't help anyway. His vision was blurry.

There was a figure above him.

Mario's heart rate shot up. The world felt like it was turning without him. Scrambling for some semblance of balance, he tried to grip the sheets and sit up. But he couldn't figure out which way was up. The figure stood above him, cold and indifferent. It wasn't her.

Silvery, malevolent eyes were on his. Glowing. A face he could barely recognize through the dark. Mario couldn't find his voice to ask, couldn't remember what he wanted to ask.

"Brother." the figure spoke, a voice he had to have known. Yes? He didn't know. He wanted Her. Where was his Queen? The eyes narrowed, Mario was helpless to the face in the shadows.

The figure's voice swallowed the silence. "Everything you know is wrong."

Mario blinked. The face was gone. The gravity of those terrible eyes was gone. He suddenly remembered how to breathe, and his lungs overworked themselves. He wanted to sleep. He wanted to get up. Directives conflicted. He needed food and water. He needed nothing.

His mind lagged. Time. What was the time? The light changed. Shadows moved. The floor, light scattered and was enveloped in the warm promise of sleep. His eyes opened and closed. He had to get up. He felt wrong, he felt like he was missing something huge.

Then, the Queen was there.

"Oh," he gasped out, and his stomach fluttered and his breath shook and he could feel himself quiver. Her smile was so far away, but she was all around him, cradling him, stroking him, tending to him. Her touch was so very cold. He could feel his own warmth seeping out from his body.

"My dear puppet," she murmured to him. His heart skipped consecutive beats. "Why do you wake? I have not called for you yet."

He tried to tell her that he didn't know. But the sounds that left him all blended together, he didn't know what he was saying. If he was saying anything. He tried to apologize, explain that he never meant to displease her. The longer he tried to speak, to formulate a response, any answer for her, the more her touch became colder.

Her scarlet eyes narrowed. "You want to sleep." she said, and her voice was above him and behind him and everywhere. "You will wake when I need you."

Cold. He was so cold. His mind lapsed. "I...Want…" he tried to speak. His thoughts lacked any articulation. His eyes started to roll up. Sleep washed over him, slowly, gently. She was gone by the time the rest of the thought came to him. "Will...to wake…"

He awoke again, several days later. There was someone there. No, just a memory. _Everything you know is wrong._

Raising his head, he observed the dust floating in and out of the light of the window. The light of a dying sun. A sudden urgency filled his chest. He had a horrible headache, he wanted to get up. Everything felt off. There was supposed to be more light. Not the dull, gray, weak rays that filled the room. He knew someone that could help restore the star's power. What was their name? No, wait, that was supposed to be him.

The Queen, where was she? The room was dark and lonely without her. He wanted her touch, her warmth, her comfort. Her kiss, the mere thought of being the subject of her affection made him shiver.

He could hear voices again. "The solstice approaches," they whispered. "The Light will soon be at the peak of her power."

Solstice. The solstice was approaching. But the lights were so dim, how could she be near her peak? Everything he knew was wrong. Everything felt wrong. Solstice sounded so familiar. There were two of them, he thought. The Light. The Light was at the peak of her power during the Summer Solstice.

As soon as he came to the realization, the Queen came to him.

She was upon him, all around him, everywhere at once. Were her eyes always so red? Fear pulsed through him in a cold rush. Her hands were freezing. He lost count of how many there were. Her expression, he couldn't make it out. She was a face that he didn't recognize. She wasn't speaking to him, but there was noise. The blood was roaring in his ears.

Somewhere through the chaos, he found one moment of clarity. She didn't look right. He didn't feel right. Something was wrong.

He opened his eyes.

"My puppet, why do you disobey? I ask you to sleep, and you wake up." Her face was pale. Her eyes were glowing red, venomous. It was all wrong. "You want to sleep. I can help you."

She started to lean down close to him. Mario squinted and tried to focus. He resisted as she got close, his knee jerked just the slightest amount, and his hands pushed against the bed.

Her expression became as cold as her body, but she didn't really have a body. His head hurt so much. He struggled to keep his eyes open. "Why do you defy me?" she hissed, and her voice vibrated deep in his chest. "I am running out of patience for you, mortal. Go back to sleep until I need you again."

His heart was pounding. He could feel her hands reaching in, infiltrating, trying to shut him off. His body mindlessly sought escape. "Don't…" Words were too far away for him to grasp.

Red eyes. Smoldering, burning eyes, trying to burn into his mind. He couldn't look away. His fingers twitched. She came closer and closer until she was the only thing he could sense. He couldn't back away. There was no escape. "Don't you want me?" she crooned, but her smile was false and simulated. A second chance. She was giving him the chance to surrender his autonomy. "I can feel your desires. You burn for this vessel. Tell me the truth, or I shall wring it out of you. You want me."

He strained against her control. His eyes were open, but he was being blinded again. "I...Want…" his chest heaved, he felt himself gasp out. She was hurting him. She would never hurt him. But he managed to choke out the words he needed to say.

"I want...Her."

Her face was no longer hers, and the piercing screech that ignited his blood was not a sound she was capable of making. The face of a monster, glowing red eyes boring into his. The form that surrounded him leaned down, and he knew what was coming, but he could not brace for it.

She kissed him. Her lips were searing against his, and an anguished cry left him. His muscles were losing faculty, freezing over, the will to fight was diminishing. But he couldn't let her win. Names were coming back to him. His purpose was coming back to him. The truth. He reached out for her.

He reached out into nothing and everything. He found what he was looking for.

She pulled away with a satisfied gleam in her crimson eyes. He was left with nothing but the faintest trace of consciousness, barely able to keep his eyes open. His body was weak and stiff. His hand gripped hard.

Her eyes followed the path of his arm. "What are you doing, mortal? Surrender to me now, and I will spare you." her lip curled, he could feel her displeasure pulsing all around them.

His voice was still within his reach. "I want...to hold you." he slurred, his eyes only just staying open. His grip tightened on her throat. "Let me...Let me hold you."

The shadows whipped about. Her true form squirmed and strained against him, but he didn't let go.

Then, she was still. Her face was before him, with a sad smile. "Mario," she whispered his name, and his heart fluttered. He almost let go of her. But his muscles didn't react in time with his thoughts. Her expression went harsh, everything soft and lovely about her disappeared in an instant.

"This vessel will not permit me to destroy him!" she howled, somewhere outside of him. Away from him. There were others? He couldn't tell, his mind was fading fast. Out of time.

He remembered her name. The name that had haunted the land for too long, that had consumed him for what had to be ages. He couldn't articulate it, but surely she knew what went through his thoughts. Her smoldering red eyes flickered to his. His blood went cold.

His eyes started to close. He started to fade out. "Very well, then," she growled, and Mario's heart pounded. "This vessel is rejecting me. If I cannot eliminate you here as I am, then I will make you live a thousand nightmares."

The last thing he saw was her horrible grin swallowed by the shadows.

O~o~O

Mario awoke with a start.

His head hurt. His body was sore and stiff. He raised his head, squinting. He recognized the Palace of Shadow. Dust motes floated through the gray rays of light that spotted the room. The beams were piercing. He hadn't seen such light in so long, his eyes took awhile to adjust.

There was a figure on the floor behind him. Two figures. No, more. Bodies? Mario's heart jolted in his chest, and he struggled to get up on his knees. "Hey," he tried to call out, but his voice was hoarse. "Hey!"

His only answer were his own echoes. The figures around him remained motionless. Heart pounding, Mario scrambled to get to his feet, but his sense of balance was off. He ended up falling right back down, boots skidding on the gravel. His elbows and palms had cuts from the debris. His cheek did, as well. It occurred to him in a horrible instant to wonder why there was debris at all.

The Palace was in shambles. The wall closest to him had collapsed, and by some miracle he hadn't been buried in the crumbling stone. The ceiling didn't look like it would hold up for much longer; he watched dust fall easily through newly formed cracks.

The entire building was going to collapse eventually. Mario got up, breathing hard, and stumbled over to the nearest body he saw. "Hey," he said, and fell to his knees beside her. "Vivian, wake up. Come on, we have to get out of here. Can you hear me?" he shook her a few times.

She didn't respond. Mario's hands started shaking. "Vivian? Please, get up," he insisted, and tried to swallow down the thick lump in his throat. She couldn't be gone. She couldn't be. He whipped his head up looking for anyone else. "Goombella! Hey, Goombella, come on. It's dangerous in here, please. We have to go." he crawled over to her, and shook Koops as well.

Their bodies were cold. He could feel the chill even through his gloves. He shut his eyes tightly and tried to control his breathing as much as he could. They were gone. Even as he tried to gather them up in his arms, carry them all out himself, he knew deep down that it would all be for naught. He could barely stand on his own, much less haul the bodies of his friends out of the door. "Anyone?" he managed to choke out. "Is anyone there?"

He heard a cough behind him. With a jolt, Mario looked back, and saw a figure on the altar. "Mario," she whispered, crystal clear through the silence.

"Princess!" Mario leapt to his feet with newfound energy, his body buzzing with adrenaline. His knees and his arms shook. But he stumbled over to her as quickly as he could, and fell by her side. He looked her over, checking for injuries. "Princess, are you okay?"

She looked up at him, with those beautiful blue eyes. Even her weak smile made his heart flutter. She tried to reach up to him. He leaned down for her, and she touched his face. Her thumb stroked the cut on his cheek. "Oh, Mario," she said, and he noticed the glassy look of her eyes and the wavering of her hand. "The map...I'm so sorry, Mario, I never should have given it to you. This is all my fault."

He grasped her small wrist and shook his head, unable to help smiling out of pure relief. "No, no. It's not your fault. The palace, it's collapsing. We have to get out of here. Can you move?" She was laying on her side. He couldn't tell how she was hurt because her dress obscured any injuries. When he tried to shift his arm beneath her shoulders, she winced, and he stopped.

"Here," she held her arms up, and Mario moved toward her, assuming she wanted him to try carrying her another way. But as soon as he moved in, she just closed her arms around his torso. He froze when he realized she was embracing him. "I'm so sorry. Mario, I'm so sorry that this all happened. Oh, Mario, my sweet Mario…"

She pressed her face into his shoulder. Mario blinked, and slowly relaxed, cradling her in his arms. "Princess?" he breathed. She held him as tight as she could, and he could smell her hair when she pressed up close. She always smelled so nice.

Her breath caught in her chest, and Mario worried that she was going to cry. "I'm so sorry about everything." she whispered into him, and one of her hands clutched the back of his head.

He reached up and touched her face. "Please don't cry," he murmured. His heart felt like it would burst with all the warmth and love he had for her. They had lost so much, but at least they would still have each other. Once all this was over, he promised himself, he was going to confess his feelings for her. They would make it out of the Thousand Year Door. She would be safe. That was all he cared about.

The ceiling rumbled. Mario raised his head, and saw the dust and debris coming loose from above.

There wasn't much time. He had to look for a way out, and get both of them to safety. "Princess," he started to say. "We have to get out of-"

Something crashed. The ground shook. Mario couldn't tell what was going on. There wasn't time. He instinctively shifted over Princess Peach, and reached up to cover his head. If it was all coming down now, at least he could protect her.

He looked down at Peach. There was a resolve in her eyes that he didn't understand. He opened his mouth to say something. But he couldn't make a sound.

She said something to him. He couldn't hear her.

Before he could blink, she moved her arms to his chest and pushed him away with startling strength.

He tumbled off of her, and rolled down some of the stair steps. "Princess!" he cried out. His voice was lost to the rumbling of the wreckage. He landed flat on his back, and immediately jolted up to try and climb back up. His vision spun. The world moved without him. Bleary from hitting his head, Mario struggled to lift himself back up. His eyes briefly focused on the rocks that had fallen where he was moments before.

Peach. His heart skipped a beat. "No," he gasped out, and scrambled up the steps.

He came around the side of the collapse, and his knees gave out as soon as he saw her.

"Mario," she said his name in a broken murmur. Her eyes were hazy, her face pale. He crawled the rest of the way over to her and reached out for her hand. Her lovely blonde hair was all matted with dirt and debris. A trail of blood ran from the top of her head, over an eye, down her cheek and spotted on the floor. Her lips were chapped. She didn't appear to be able to focus on him. "My Mario…"

He fell down on his front with her, clasping her only free hand in both of his. Her entire lower half was crushed under the wreckage. "We- we have to get you out of there," he tried to force down the lump in his throat, but he knew. His eyes stung. He knew there was nothing he could do. "I just- I just have to-"

She stopped him with a gentle smile and a shaking finger to his lips. "It's okay," she said, and her voice was impossibly faded. She wasn't going to make it. Mario shut his eyes tight and dipped his head, trying to breathe.

"Please," he begged, and his voice cracked. "Please, Princess…" _Please don't leave me here._

She continued to gaze at him with her sad smile. The smile was the worst part. "My sweet Mario," she whispered. Her voice was almost completely gone.

There wasn't much time. He shook his head, grasping her hand tighter. She weakly grasped his in return. "I wanted to tell you something." he choked and looked up at her. Her glazed blue eyes bore into his. How could he tell her? How could he explain that she was everything good in the world? How could he begin to put into words how she took his breath away, how she graced his dreams every night? How his thoughts always wandered to her? "I…"

As he looked into her eyes, he realized he had to bite his tongue. He just couldn't do that to her. "I'm going to miss you." he eventually said. The unspoken words were bitter on his tongue. _I love you. _He couldn't say it. _I love you so much that it hurts._

She was looking at him with that soft smile. And then she wasn't. Her eyes looked right through him, into the distance. Mario gasped and held down a sob. She was gone.

He pried her hand open and shifted up, on shaky hands and knees. He leaned down and pressed a wobbly kiss to her forehead. "I'm sorry," he let out, and backed away from her as the tears blurred his vision and spilled down his cheeks.

He had never felt so cold and alone in all his life.

Mario got to his feet, and trudged out of the Palace of Shadow. He had a limp. His uneven footsteps echoed all around him, and followed him back out of the Thousand Year Door.

He wandered back through Rogueport the way he came. There was no one in town. The sky was dark, and the rain was cold. His fingers became numb.

And he walked, with a resigned march, back home. Every step hurt. He wanted to call out, to talk to someone, anyone. But there wasn't a soul around.

Everyone was gone.

He made it back home after the numbness had spread up his arms and legs. His entire body shook. He looked to the horizon, and saw nothing but cloudy skies.

He found her statue.

Time made her smooth stone take on soft shades of blue and green. Sunlight peeked through the skies, for just moments at a time, shining on her. Mario wondered if the sun knew that an even brighter star had left the world, taking with her all of the warmth and love she had in her heart. The statue towered over the gardens, standing proud. Watching over her kingdom for all until the end of time.

Her gentle smile, her soft hands, her kind demeanor were all carved into eternity. But no statue could ever do the real thing justice. He looked up at her, for every detail missed. Stone could not convey the way she saw beauty in the darkest places, how she loved with every inch of her being. Stone could not show the way she could reach out to the most hardened souls, like his, and convince them to let her in.

No, the stone could never do her justice at all.

Mario crawled up the pedestal, and fell to his knees before her.

The stone was cold, but he felt colder. He curled up at her feet and held himself tight, cheek pressed into the statue. The rainfall grew louder, thunder rumbled in the distance. He shut his eyes.

He willed himself to sleep until he didn't have to wake up in a world without her in it anymore.

O~o~O

Mario woke up with a start, gasping.

He jolted up, whipping his head around, trying to see through the dark. He couldn't tell where he was. Had he been dreaming? He couldn't remember what had happened. Chest heaving, he struggled to get up.

"Easy, easy, Mario, it's alright," before he could make any move, he was surrounded in a warm embrace.

He relaxed a little into her touch and listened to her voice. "Princess…" he sighed, his voice small. "Princess, where…"

"Shh, shh," she soothed him, and the tension slowly left his shoulders. While he calmed down, her hand stroked his hair, and trailed down to touch his forehead. "It's okay. You just had a very bad dream. You need to rest some more, you've come down with a fever."

Mario consciously slowed down his breathing, and wondered how she might have known that he had a bad dream. He figured he must have been obvious. Squinting, he tried to make out her face through the dark. He recognized her. Then, he recognized what should have been her bedroom. Why was he in her bedroom?

Before he could ask, she shushed him with a finger to his lips. He blushed at the contact. The heady smell of sweet herbal tea surrounded him. "Here, all you need is a nice cup of tea and you'll feel better." he nodded numbly while she helped him grasp a cup in both of his hands.

She watched him expectantly, and he realized he was just staring at the steam twirling in odd patterns. He moved to take a sip. She smiled.

As soon as the tea touched his lips, he almost jerked back.

The tea was freezing.

Blinking several times, he opened his mouth to say something. But Peach didn't appear to notice his reaction. Maybe the tea was supposed to be cold? He looked at the cup again. There wasn't any steam anymore. Or, he thought in a slight panic, he had just been sitting there staring for so long that the tea had become cold? He didn't know, but cold tea was fine. He took a sip.

The tea was sweet. Too sweet. Normally, she made tea exactly to his taste, whether she intended to or not. But he didn't want to be rude. Mario tried to disguise his shudder, afraid he would offend her, and looked around the room instead. The walls were purple. That was strange, he could have sworn her walls were pink.

He shook his head. Must be the lighting.

"That must have been very frightening. Seeing everyone you love die." Peach remarked casually, as if she had said something about the weather. Mario almost choked on the tea. He had nearly forgotten about that dream already, but she made all of his panic and despair come rushing back. "It's all over now, though."

He didn't understand her tone. She was practically shrugging it off, when he knew her to be very sympathetic. Maybe she was just tired. He chalked it up to something like that, and nodded, trying to finish the tea off as fast as he could. The sweetness was becoming too much for him.

Tilting his head back to drink the rest, it occurred to him to wonder how she even knew what he dreamed in the first place.

Slowly, he lowered his cup, and stared at her. "Princess, how-?"

"Shh, hush now," she said with a soft smile, and took the cup from him. He fell quiet while she adjusted pillows behind him, and just stared with wide eyes as she eased him back down onto the bed. She loomed over him. He didn't remember her being so tall. "Let's just tuck you in so you can go back to sleep."

His face was hot. He was very aware of her hands smoothing down the front of his shirt, and he couldn't look her in the eyes. She pulled the sheets up to his chin.

The ceiling. Mario narrowed his eyes. Something was off with the ceiling, he remembered she had a chandelier. There was something decorative in nearly every aspect of her castle. Instead, there was nothing, and the ceiling was so dark that he couldn't tell how high it was. The moment he realized this, Peach leaned down close to him.

She was really close. Mario tried to hold his breath. "My sweet Mario," she crooned, and Mario's heart hammered away in his chest. Her face was an inch from his. Was she going to kiss him? He didn't know.

He blinked a couple of times. She was so close that he could smell her perfume. The scent was dizzyingly potent. Too frightened to say anything, or ask what she was doing, Mario swallowed hard.

She leaned even closer, until his face practically tingled with how close hers was. He was convinced his cheeks were burning. She started to tilt her head.

Was this really how they were going to kiss? Not that he was going to complain. Mario tried to relax, and slowly closed his eyes.

Nothing happened.

When he opened his eyes again, confused, Peach had leaned away again with an amused smile on her face.

"Gotcha," she teased, tapping his lips with a slender finger. Her eyes suddenly took on a malevolent glow from the light of the window. She chuckled like something was funny. "Oh, Mario. Did you really think I could ever actually love you?"

Mario blinked.

The bed and the sheets around him felt extremely hot. He shifted underneath her stare. "Oh," he stammered, trying not to let the hurt show. "I, ehm, no? Not-not really, I…" he trailed off, sitting up a little on his elbows. He couldn't look at her. He wanted to melt, to disappear.

She was laughing, and Mario wanted to cover his face. How did everything go so wrong? He felt the burning sting of shame behind his eyes, but he couldn't let her see. The bed felt huge. He didn't know what he was supposed to do. Laugh along? He couldn't smile. Compared to her, compared to the room, he was so very small. Especially under her eyes.

The more time passed, the more she laughed. "You poor fool," she said, and abruptly leaned down and trapped him on the bed with her arms on either side of him. Her leer was wide, malicious. "You're nothing but a chubby little plumber. What could a princess like me ever possibly see in you? You're so short! You have such a big nose, too."

Stunned, Mario couldn't utter a word. He just looked at her for a long, stupid moment. He wanted to crawl away from her. He wanted to hide his face from the world, because he knew everything she said was right. He didn't have the capacity to react in any intelligent way. She already started mocking the way he looked at her, mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.

What happened? He didn't understand what he did wrong. He tried to lower his head, but she forced his chin back up.

"Look at me," she hissed. "You'll never be good enough, understand?"

Swallowing hard, Mario unwittingly nodded. _I know_, he wanted to say. The bed was sinking and she was looming over him and the room had never been so unfamiliar and unwelcoming. He must have done something wrong. She used to make him feel so safe and happy.

Her eyes gleamed in the night. "That's right. This is all your fault," she sneered. She grinned so wide that she split her face, and the darkness beneath her skin reached out to him.

He cried out. The bed was miles beneath the earth. She rose above him, like a giant, the Shadow Queen in her full splendor. Her form slithered and swayed like a giant serpent. She grinned with a mouth full of fangs.

"Goodnight, Mario," she spoke in a thousand horrible voices, and lunged for him.

O~o~O

"No!" Mario awoke with an abrupt start.

He couldn't keep doing this. He rolled over on his knees, clutching his heart, chest heaving.

A thousand nightmares. She promised him a thousand nightmares, and now he was waking up in the next one. Gasping desperately for breath, he clutched his head, gripping his hair and pressing his head into the dirt. "This isn't real," he gasped. His lungs hurt. His head hurt.

He couldn't handle any more. But there was light in this dream. He strained to raise his head, blinking into the sun. He focused on the world around him. Trees, grass. He knew those hills. Glancing behind him, he recognized the bleary outline of Peach's castle. Home again. How did he get here?

Turning, he saw a gathering in the square. The townspeople. What were they doing? He squinted, he saw a familiar figure in the middle. A platform. Someone was adjusting a rope.

His heart skipped a beat. He jumped to his feet, and stumbled down the steps to the square. He would know that pink dress anywhere. And he knew what the rope meant.

"...discovered to be responsible for these atrocities against the Mushroom Kingdom. Her royal highness is hereby sentenced to death." an old Toad was reciting from a script. Everyone's heads were lowered. Princess Peach stood, silent, gazing ahead of her. Beside her, her own advisors were carrying the rope. Her hands were clasped together. No bounds were needed.

Mario tripped over himself trying to rush into the scene. "Hey!" he hollered, disrupting the procedure. Everyone looked at him. Their stares were unpleasant, shaken. He realized he must not look very put together. His clothes were rumpled, his hair mussed. His eyes were heavy. He felt as if he hadn't slept in days. Their eyes carried more weight than gravity. Seeing this, the vestiges of shame came back to haunt him. His voice lost power. "Don't do this, please!"

His voice was weak. The advisor nearest to him scoffed. "Do not interrupt us. We know you were only following orders, but if you say anything more, your punishment will be more severe." their stares hardened.

Looking around, everyone had fixed him with a glare, all except the Princess. The Princess continued to stare blankly ahead of her. She wouldn't look to him. She wouldn't look to anyone. But he knew the Princess that stood there was the Princess he loved. Breathing hard, Mario shook his head. "No! You don't have to do this! It wasn't her, it was-" he looked at them, their cold eyes that refused to understand him. He blinked. "It was the Shadow Queen…! You have to…"

His words fell on deaf ears. Their eyes, something was wrong. He recognized the faint purple aura that darkened the Toads. The Shadow Queen no longer possessed the Princess, had she possessed all of the citizens? Mario backed up a step. No. Not possessed, only influenced. She had turned their hearts and minds just enough for them to execute their Princess.

They were helpless to her power. No matter what he said or did, they wouldn't hear him. Mario gritted his teeth and braced to run.

"Halt! You are not permitted to come into the square!" as soon as Mario made a move, he looked down and found that his wrists and ankles were bound by chains. No one stood near enough to have touched him. So this was a dream as well. Mario lurched forward and struggled to stay standing.

He fussed with his wrists. The chains had to be able to come off.

"Mario, it's okay." he froze when he heard her voice. Whipping his head up, he saw Princess Peach looking out across the horizon of her kingdom. Her tone was resigned. "Don't worry about me. It's okay."

She turned her head to face him, and smiled. The Toads beside her fitted the noose around her neck.

In an instant, Mario tore his wrists apart. The chains clattered to the ground. "No!" His Firebrand churned and swelled, igniting his fists. Dream or not, he had to save her. He took off into the square, straight to the platform. The Toads attacked. They had spears that came from nowhere, and magic amplified by the Shadow Queen.

Mario hurtled through their attacks without his usual grace. He stumbled and got hit, but nothing could stop him. He leapt up onto the platform and knocked everyone else off.

The Princess had to stand straight and still because of the taut noose. Mario reached up to lift it from around her neck, moving faster than he intended. She flinched when the rope was raised, but he didn't have time to apologize. The Toads were getting back up. They were yelling. Princess Peach tried to say something to him too, but over all the chaos, Mario couldn't listen to anyone. He tried to ignore his pounding head and swept Peach up in his arms, before he jumped off the platform and sprinted away from the castle. Away from everything.

The blood roared in his ears. Mario could only hear himself breathing and the distant shouts of the Toads behind him. His boots were heavy and loud on the grass. He could hardly feel his legs moving, or his arms while he carried the Princess. She clung to him, around his neck, but he barely processed her touch or weight at all.

He tore aimlessly through the forest. No sense of direction. No plan. The only thing he understood was the desire to get both of them as far as possible. The trees moved like dark blurs all around him. He didn't have to think about how to move to avoid them. He had to keep running. Keep moving.

His chest burned with a chill. His skin was hot, but his body was cold. He didn't know what way he was going. He could feel injuries, from other dreams, acting up. In his knee, in his ankle. In his shoulder. Phantoms of pain that became real once he remembered.

He stumbled to a halt, and pressed his back into the nearest tree that could hide both of them from view. He slid down into the ground. His knees caved, too weak to support him any longer.

His breathing was shallow and fast. He couldn't see. His vision was hazy, he was spaced out and focused on nothing and everything at once. His entire body buzzed with adrenaline. He was vaguely aware that Peach was still in his arms. She probably wanted him to let go of her, but his muscles stopped responding to him as soon as he was down. He couldn't speak.

"Mario," he heard her voice, muddled in his ears. A hand stroked the side of his face. He closed his eyes and struggled to swallow. His heartbeat was uncomfortably fast. "My stars, Mario, are you okay?"

He couldn't respond. Peach reached to hold his face in both of her hands. "You're shaking," she said, her voice soft. Mario felt dizzy, and his entire world fell forward when she pulled his face into her shoulder. Her arms were around him, gentle pressure. Her perfume and her heartbeat surrounded him. Mario blinked. He managed to pull in a longer breath, but it sounded more like he was still gasping for air. "What has she done to you, Mario?" she asked.

Several moments passed. She stroked his hair, and encouraged him to follow her breathing patterns. Every breath still rattled in his chest. But he managed to slow his heart down enough.

He lifted his head. His eyes were still unfocused, but he could see her. She smiled sadly. He felt her thumb go over the worried creases in his forehead. "What's the matter?" her voice was unbearably gentle.

Mario tilted his head back until he bumped into the rough bark of the tree. Startled, Peach tried to help him lean back, but he shook his head. He choked on something in his throat. "You're not real," he managed to say, and shut his eyes. This all had to be a dream again. Either she was the Shadow Queen, manipulating his senses again, or the illusion of Peach was going to die a horrible death out of his control. He couldn't do it anymore.

Peach searched his face, and his breath hitched in his chest. "Please," he begged, feeling his eyes sting. His hands couldn't grip her. He tried to pull her closer. "Please, just make it stop. Turn into the nightmare." If the nightmare happened, then it would end. Then, he would be thrown into the next one. He wanted to get it over with, so the illusion would stop tormenting him. The dreams were becoming too long.

Shaking her head, Peach opened her mouth to speak. "Mario, I…"

"Please," Mario said again, his voice thick and wavering. "Please, I can't let go of you until you do." he shut his burning eyes and sniffled.

No. He wasn't going to cry. He was stronger than that, the Shadow Queen would have to kill him before he let her see his tears.

But it hurt so much.

All of the shame, all of the despair came rushing up in his throat. His temples pounded. He groaned and thumped his head back into the tree again to feel anything else, to feel that blaring rush when he struck the back of his skull. He couldn't bear to look at her. Any moment, and the illusion would disappear. Her weight in his lap, her warmth and her scent would all go away again.

She pulled his head away from the tree and cradled him close. "Why don't you believe I'm real?" she asked him. Her voice was devoid of judgement, and considerate. The other Princess Peaches that he met in his dreams had never spoken to him with her usual soothing tone. Was this the Shadow Queen's next new trick? Did she intend to make the illusion indistinguishable from the real thing? Mario could feel his resolve crumbling, he wanted nothing more than to accept the reality she had presented. He wanted to badly to believe Peach was the one who held him so close. But none of it was real.

The will to fight was leaving again. "Because…" he mumbled into her shoulder. "Because this- this is a dream. The other ones, they turn into the nightmare."

Peach nodded and hummed in understanding. "How many nightmares have you had?" she touched his face, his back, keeping him near. He couldn't resist her.

The question made him shudder. "I don't know," his voice warbled, and Peach was quick to hold him tighter and soothe him by petting the back of his head.

Before she could ask him anything else, the memories of all those other dreams, all those other nightmares came rushing back. "I watch you die, a hundred times. Everyone. They are gone. Just you and me, and then-" his voice caught. "I wake up. Into another one. I want to tell you that I love you, because- because I can't watch you die again. But you are the Shadow Queen. You laugh at me for loving you. I wake up again. I run, so much, to try and save you. But I am always too late. I watch you die, a hundred more times."

He was lightheaded. The world was still, but he was spinning. He gritted his teeth and tried to bite back the sob that stuck in his throat. There was no fight left in him. He couldn't resist when she gasped and embraced him with more fervor than she had ever embraced him before.

That settled it. She wasn't real. She was the perfect illusion, exactly what he wanted. But he was helpless. He allowed her to make him believe, for a little while, that she was real. Just for a moment. He could give in to her comfort for just a moment.

Her fingers curled through his hair. Her embrace was warm and firm. For a wondrous instant, he could believe that she would never let him go. "And you believe this is a dream, too." Peach murmured, and Mario was surprised by how upset she sounded. "You don't think this is real. Any moment, all of this will fall away."

He couldn't answer her except to nod. Short and fast, and with his throat so tight he couldn't speak if he wanted to. She breathed in deep and he tried to breathe with her. Breathe her in. Surround himself with her, brand himself with her. Make the illusion last as long as possible.

She pressed her lips to his temple. Her magic kiss healed his wounds, eased his heartbeat. "Nothing I say will convince you that this is real," she assumed. "Then would you pretend with me?"

He raised his head a little. "Hm?"

She kissed his forehead before pulling him back where he was. "Pretend with me. Pretend this is real, just for a little while, okay?"

Mario settled back against her, and his arms started to relax. He was able to process other sensations. The rough bark digging into his back, the softness of her hair against his cheek. The slight give in the ground they sat upon. "This is a dream…" he protested weakly, but he wanted to believe she was real. In his hands, he carried the most precious dream of all.

"I know, I know." she soothed him. "Just pretend with me."

He couldn't say no to her. Dream or not, she was everything to him. He let go of her shoulders and knees and instead wrapped his arms around her waist. A shaky breath left him. In an instant, she could disappear and he would be holding nothing but air and his own shattered heart.

But she stayed there with him, allowed him to embrace her like he had always longed to. He always believed that if he ever had the chance to hold her like he was, then he would be the one comforting her. He never imagined it would be the other way around.

"She's done a lot to you. The Shadow Queen, she must have worked you to the bone." he could hardly hear what she was saying, just her voice alone was comfort enough. "My sweet Mario. You must be so tired. I wish I could let you rest for longer, but we must stop the Shadow Queen before the summer solstice ends."

Solstice. He remembered hearing something about the solstice ages ago, had to be a distant dream? Or was he awake for that? He wasn't certain. The solstice meant something important. He finally nodded so she knew he understood. Play along, he was pretending this was real. Just to make dream Peach happy.

She kissed him one last time, on his cheek. The moment seemed to last ages. Mario felt his face flush with heat.

"Can you stand?" she asked him. She began to shift off of his lap and on to her knees beside him. He felt like his back was stuck to the tree, and the ground had rooted him in, but she encouraged him to lean forward and he found that he wasn't stuck at all.

His limbs trembled, but he felt better. He finally nodded and started the long process of getting to his feet. She was there with him the whole time; she held his elbow and kept a hand on his back. Even though his body felt like it wasn't even his, she was there and she was his anchor, holding down his sense of reality until he could finally feel his weight on his feet again.

Her hand moved from his elbow until she found his hand. She wound their fingers together. "There you are," she praised softly. "Now, there's a stream nearby. Some water will help you feel better. Then, we can go back to the castle and take on the Shadow Queen."

They walked through the forest. His balance was shaky at first, his movements stiff and awkward. His muscles weren't fully awake yet. But as they went on, treading through the soft grass and around the dense trees, he was able to move more naturally.

"The Shadow Queen was careful not to harm my body while she used me as a vessel," Peach looked down at herself, and brushed off the front of her dress with her free hand. Mario was still very aware of the way she continued to hold his hand. He wondered how she could be so casual about it. They walked, their footsteps rustling the leaves on the ground. "Of course, she had to preserve me to preserve herself. But I can see she was not so gentle with you. Not with your body, and not with your mind."

She fixed him with a look of sympathy. Mario didn't know what to say, and he couldn't look her in the eye. In the back of his mind, he knew the Peach who spoke to him was just a dream, just another dream. But this dream was being awfully nice to him. All of the other ones hurt him. All of the other ones wanted to see him dead, wanted to see her dead, wanted to find and exploit every single one of his weaknesses. They had, and he was worn.

Peach squeezed his hand. Mario was startled, and he looked up at her. "Hey," she said, with a small smile. "Earlier, when I asked you about your dreams. Did you mean what you said?"

Confused, Mario rubbed his head. "What did I say?" he asked, blinking at the forest floor.

She didn't answer immediately, and Mario risked a glance up at her. She was looking off into the distance with a soft look. "When you said that you wanted to tell me that you loved me...Did you mean that?" she looked to him, and Mario averted his eyes.

"Oh," he said, and ducked his head. He hoped the brim of his hat hid his face. She was a dream, only a dream. His face burned, but he could be honest with her, right? She was just an illusion. "Ehm. Yes." he finally admitted. It didn't matter. She wasn't real, Princess Peach wouldn't find out about his feelings before he was ready for her to. Maybe talking to her in a dream could help him understand his own feelings. Maybe it would help him learn how to tell her when he woke up, assuming he could make it out of the Shadow Queen's nightmares alive.

He tried to relax with a deep breath, telling himself over and over again that she wasn't real. The sentiment didn't make him feel any better. Peach stopped walking.

Looking back at her, Mario blinked several times when Peach came to stand in front of him, seizing both of his shoulders. Her expression was troubled. "Mario, I need you to listen to me. Okay?"

When he didn't respond other than staring, she gave him a slight shake. "Okay?" she asked again. Mario swallowed hard and nodded rapidly. He had been so cold before, but now he was feeling very hot. Peach didn't give him any chance to look away, or shift back. She held him still, her eyes boring into his.

"Listen. I would never laugh at you if you told me something like that. I wouldn't, ever," she promised him in a fierce whisper. Mario noticed she had leaned closer. Her eyes were hard, determined, and she glanced down to his lips. "I wouldn't. Because the truth- the truth is…"

She couldn't finish her sentence, and gathered herself with a deep breath. Mario stood very still. Even as she leaned closer, he didn't move. Even when she reached up to touch his face with one hand, her thumb stroking his cheek. Even when her lips were an inch from his.

He watched her close her eyes. He could feel her soft breath against his face, and he just stood there. His lips practically tingled from her proximity, but she had promised him before, in another dream. Faint memories surfaced, of her leer and her laughter when he fell for it. He knew what would happen if he closed his eyes. So he didn't. He didn't react at all.

His heart pounded. But if he closed his eyes, if he kissed her, the dream would all fall away.

Peach must have realized his eyes were still open. She backed off a fraction, and looked at him. His empty countenance. His expression entirely devoid of emotion.

She nodded to herself, and let go of him. "Right," she said, taking in a shaky breath. She tried to laugh, but the sound was hollow, and hurt. "I nearly forgot. We're only pretending this is real. Of course, you can't love a dream."

Mario didn't say anything. He watched her adjust her dress and look at the ground. She looked at his hand, as if she was contemplating on holding it again, but she decided not to. "This- this way," she gestured vaguely ahead of them, and started walking again.

He followed her. Her pace was brisk, moving quicker through the woods than before. She always moved with such grace and elegance, even in a hurry. Mario had some trouble keeping up with her. At least, until he heard the running of the stream.

The weariness of his body was immediately replaced by the fundamental need for food and water. When was the last time he ate? He didn't remember. The next thing he knew, they had come upon a clearing with the stream. He didn't think twice before he stumbled to the water.

The water was clear and cool, and Mario could have sworn he had never tasted anything so beautiful in his entire life. The stream was heaven. He fell to his knees, without caring about how wet his clothes would get, and struggled to breathe in between gulps of water. The sun was hot on his back. He couldn't place the last time he felt the star's warmth, and he wished it would never leave.

Peach knelt beside him, but he didn't notice her until her hand started to rub his back. "There now, drink as much as you need." she murmured over the gurgling stream, and he was careful not to splash her when he dipped his head to wash his face.

While the water was cold, the chill was not the same as the Shadow Queen's, which was penetrating and internal. Instead, the water was refreshing to his body and his mind. He felt awake, no longer like the Queen had put him to sleep for some unspecified amount of time. When he sat up and looked at Peach, she gave him a relieved smile.

"You look alive now," she said. Her bright eyes reflected the sunlight and water. She was dazzling, and Mario couldn't help but stare. Dream or not. She was everything. His heart skipped a beat when she reached to delicately swipe some water droplets off of his face. "How do you feel?"

The water had done wonders for him. "Better," he answered with a small, but earnest smile. His voice had body and volume, and he could finally feel the strength in his limbs and core. He was not some massless entity. He had shape, form, density, he was a physical being affected by gravity just like everything else.

And he had a world to save.

He realized this abruptly. How could he have allowed the Shadow Queen to rule over him all this time? He had to wake up, had to pull himself together. Everyone was relying on him.

Just as he was going to try and explain to Peach that he had to go, she picked up both of his hands. He blinked up at her.

"I've run out of time. Listen to me; you can do this. I believe in you." she clutched his hands, and leaned closer to him. Her expression was tense. Mario didn't understand the urgency of her tone; they were still a long way from the Thousand Year Door. "She was prepared to fight you all along, but she wasn't prepared for outside help. This is going to be confusing, and hard. It's already been so hard, but you can win. I know you can. I know, because I've always believed in you, Mario."

He opened his mouth, but he didn't know what to say. She leaned closer. Mario was certain he forgot every word of English when she pressed her lips to his cheek.

"Good luck," she whispered. "It's time to wake up."

O~o~O

"Mario!"

He blinked several times. His head had a slight ache, he thought, from laying down. Laying on the ground. What was he doing on the floor?

There were a lot of voices. Mario couldn't distinguish any of them. Pushing himself up, he lifted his head and looked around. He squinted.

The Palace of Shadow. So he had never left.

"Mario! Thank goodness!" to his right, Vivian came into focus. Right, his friends. Everyone, they all came to help him up, and he found himself smiling. Madame Flurrie, Koops, Yoshi, all the friends he had made during his journey. The voices. There were so many voices, he recognized them all.

He rubbed his head as he finally got to his feet, and looked at them all. It was so good to see them; hadn't it been weeks, or months? He wasn't certain. Before he could ask, Vivian started trying to turn him around. "Look, behind you!"

_Behind…?_ He felt the imposing presence even before he saw it, and recognized the Shadow Queen's true form. She was wheezing, a deep sound that reverberated through the long hall. Mario realized she was weak. And he spotted Princess Peach, intertwined in the Queen's spatial being.

The Shadow Queen's dark eyes focused on him, and narrowed. "So, you're awake," she rasped, and her voice vibrated in his chest. Despite her state, she gave a slight smirk. Mario prepared to fight, unsure what to make of the satisfied aura that came from her. "You poor fool. I would have given you everything if you had only submitted to me."

He didn't see her attack coming. A thousand dead, shadowy hands lashed out, and he cried out as he was sent sprawling on the floor again. His friends fell beside him. The Shadow Queen loomed over them all.

She chuckled, her tone husky and haunting. Her leer glinted through the dark. "Game over, puppet. Did you really think you ever had any control?"

One dead hand dove for him, and he reacted just in time to catch it before it could go for his throat. The lithe, snake-like tendril squirmed in his grasp. He glared at the Queen.

The voices. So many voices calling his name, and Mario blinked. Those were the voices of all of his friends that he had met. Everything came rushing back.

The Crystal Stars. He remembered. The battle had already started; he and his friends had already done damage to the Queen while she used Princess Peach as a vessel. But once she had assumed her true form, she was impervious to their attacks. The Crystal Stars came to life and scattered again. Back where they came from. They were allowing him to hear the voices of all the people he had met on his journey. He could finally understand them.

"Keep fighting, Mario!"

"You can do it!"

"We believe in you!"

Mario let out a breath, and smiled up at all the voices. They were cheering for his friends, too. Everyone was relying on them. He couldn't let anybody down.

The Shadow Queen rose, but a new light glowed brighter and brighter from within her. Mario narrowed his eyes, and the thousands of shadow hands shrunk away from him. His friends all cried out, but not out of fear. He shielded his face. The light, he knew that light. He knew that warmth. "Princess," he whispered in awe, once he recognized her.

She smiled. He could just make out her smile through the Shadow Queen's hold on her. "Mario…" she said, her voice disjointed. "Mario, I…"

The Shadow Queen trembled. "What?!" she roared. "You wretched little girl! You disobey me?!"

Princess Peach fixed them all with her powerful gaze. But she was fading, fast. "Mario, take...Take the last of my power…" she managed to say. Her voice cracked.

There was a greater flash of light. Peach raised her arms as much as she could against the constraints of the Queen. The entire palace was bathed in her splendor, her force. Mario felt the rest of his strength and power coming back to him. The voices all around them continued to grow, and to cheer.

"You brat! Obey me, girl!" the Shadow Queen finally gained back her faculty, and started to shove Princess Peach back down.

Mario got to his feet, her name on the tip of his tongue, but he knew there was nothing he could do. He watched her go. "Farewell, Mario, I…" she turned her eyes to him, only him. Mario set his jaw and looked right at her. His heart swelled for her. Her voice was nearly gone. "I believe in you…!"

Yes. Peach trusted him to save them all, and even at the cost of her life, he knew he had to succeed. Mario gritted his teeth. He would get her back. Even at the cost of his own life.

The Shadow Queen let out a frustrated howl. "Oh, very clever indeed, Princess, but you will not undo me! Know me as your Queen!" she raised her huge, nebulous hands, and slammed them into the floor. "KNEEL!"

The hall was silent for only a moment, resounding with her cry. Her echoes became fainter as they were swallowed by the palace. Then, the encouraging voices from the Crystal Stars were renewed, louder. The world was watching.

He wouldn't fail them. Glancing behind him, Mario signalled to his friends. "Here we go!" he warned them, getting ready to run.

"We're right behind you!" Admiral Bobbery assured him.

Vivian came up to his left. "This is our moment!" she grinned, just as Ms. Mowz came up on his right. Everyone stood with him, and with all his partners by his side, Mario felt a new swell of pride. Of course. He would never have to fight alone. All along, he needed the help of his friends, the Princess, his brother. Everyone that he knew and loved was there with him. He never felt braver, even staring down the Shadow Queen herself.

The ground beneath them all shook. "Enough! This ends now!" The Shadow Queen bellowed. She prepared her attack, the room became chilled with her power.

"I don't think so!" Goombella hollered, just as Mario surged forward to attack. She winked at him when he glanced to her. He grinned.

The Shadow Queen used her dead hands to lash out at them all, but Mario was fast, and his friends were tough. "I've got this one, old boy!" he heard Admiral Bobbery call out, and Mario nodded.

He worked to divert and distract the hands while Bobbery charged directly toward the Queen. Madame Flurrie and Koops helped shield him until he got close enough. He didn't need long. In an instant, he blew away the Shadow Queen. Her hands had shadowy pieces blasted off. He did a lot of damage.

"What?!" the Queen thundered, her voice tremulous with anger. She looked down at herself. "How is this possible?!"

They could do damage. Mario charged up his Firebrand. Whatever it took to bring her down, he knew they could do it. "Let's go!" he sprinted toward her, and threw a fiery punch.

The voices of everyone from Rogueport grew louder. "You can do this!" His friends attacked with everything they had. All of their power, all of their strength, was concentrated toward the Queen. "Keep going!" They moved in tandem. Each of them moved so quickly, and with such coordination, that the Queen couldn't even begin an effective counterattack. "We believe in you guys!"

Vivian used the power of her shade. Koops took advantage of his shell, and Ms. Mowz used his momentum to land a blow. Yoshi wouldn't be ignored, and hurled punches as hard as he could. Madame Flurrie used her wind to give Goombella greater speed with her attacks. With everyone moving around her so quickly, the Shadow Queen struggled to keep up.

She lashed out. Mario took the blow to defend his friends, scowling at the Queen through a wince. He wouldn't let her hurt anyone else. She did a lot of damage, so she hadn't lost much of her strength. But Mario wasn't even close to letting her knock him down again.

Hands exploded from everywhere. Mario leapt out of the way to regroup. Duck, roll, jump. The hands were attracted to movement. He was too quick. He threw fire to take out the mass of hands that chased him.

"She's nearly done for!" Yoshi cried out from across the hall. "Go, Gonzalez!"

Mario sprinted until he had enough momentum to leap high in the air. The voices all rose around him. The Queen narrowed her eyes, but her form swayed and faltered.

He raised his fists. She showed him a world where he was powerless to resist her. She had put him through a thousand nightmares, dissected his mind and showed him the worst parts of himself. All in his head, she had exhausted her methods of torment on him. He couldn't ever forgive her for trying to darken the world by putting him to sleep.

All of the anger, all of his fear and anguish came forward. Her plans had all failed. All her attempts to bring him down from the inside had collapsed. He slammed everything he had down on her, blazing with fury.

The final blow.

Her swathing form writhed. "No!" she screamed. "Impossible!" She buckled over, her sightless eyes on him. Her papery, poisonous hands were folding under the weight of reality. Her crown couldn't be supported by her fading being.

But she locked eyes with Mario, refusing to look away from him. Her dying stare chilled him to the bone. "Unthinkable," she quavered bitterly. "I cannot be beaten by lesser beings such as these…And I had just been reborn into the world…"

Her voice fell away. The entire room shook. Mario returned her stare with a hard look, and watched as her form crumpled and collapsed in on itself. The darkness swallowed her up. All the voices from the Crystal Stars had gone quiet, and his partners were all silent behind him. The silence was worse than the noise.

The Queen's presence left the palace, like sand falling through fingertips. He could feel her influence leaving through his own mind and body. Had she been inside of them all? He shuddered as the last of her darkness left. A weight had been lifted. For the first time in a very long time, he felt like he could actually breathe.

When every last trace of her was gone, Mario wavered, and fell to his knees.

"Mario!" Vivian, Goombella, some others rushed to his side. He caught himself with his arm before he could fall over, and raised his head to look to the altar. His friends fussed all around him. The light of the candles washed over the room, illuminating the space that had gone so dark before.

He shook his head. "I'm fine," he promised them, breathless. The weight of the battle was finally catching up to him. He was worn.

But he was okay. Everything was okay. All he cared about was Princess Peach, who laid on the altar before them.

Peach. She stirred on the floor, and Mario could finally let himself relax. She was safe.

O~o~O

The rest of the events of the day went by like a blur. Mario felt as if the people and places moved around him, like he was barely there. Of course, he was there, and he was gently acknowledged by all the people in Rogueport. Perhaps they knew he needed to be by himself for a little while. Maybe they understood he needed time to recuperate in his own head.

Princess Peach had touched his back as they walked through the streets, once most of the attention was gone. The contact meant more than she could know. "Are you okay?" she lowered her voice, speaking only to him. Though she knew the answer to the question she had asked, what she was really asking was more than that.

Tasting the salty air, and feeling real sunlight on his face, Mario looked at the ground. "I want to go home." he answered quietly.

His feet were heavy. With every step, he felt as if he were dragging himself along. But he kept moving.

The farewells were painful, for he made so many friends and he had to leave them so soon. But as soon as he and Princess Peach and Toadsworth were on their way home, Mario could feel nothing but relief.

He watched Rogueport shrink into the distance and fade into the horizon from the deck of their ship. He watched, even as the sun set and the stars came out. Even as the chilly sea breeze blew through him. He stood at the edge of the boat, leaning heavily against the rail, watching the sea.

The air became colder. The moonlight reflected in the ever-churning waters, and Mario was aware of forces he could not feel. The moon, pulling and pushing the oceans. A silvery, smiling crescent. The earth, hurtling through space at unfathomable speeds, orbiting around a star that sustained such vast and precious life. Gravity, keeping his feet on the ground, drawing him into the smoldering core in the center of the planet.

Then, there were forces that were even less tangible. Bonds between people, a sense of justice. Connections, morals, emotions. The things that made him human. Forces that were fundamental to his heart and soul. Forces that acted throughout life, continuously, to the ends of nothing and everything.

The stars glimmered in the sky. The wind soared across the ocean. And the boat rocked gently in the water, guided by constellations and pushed by the sea breeze.

He must have been standing out on the deck for a long time.

"Hey there," he turned his head as he heard her voice. Princess Peach, huddled in her nightgown, her voice delicate. She was about to say something else, until she saw his face. She rushed to him, concerned. "Oh, Mario, what's wrong?"

Wiping at his eyes with the back of his hand, he sniffled and angled his head down. Peach rested a hand on his shoulder. The words didn't come to him at first, so he was quiet.

The wind stung his eyes. The cold didn't bother him so much, but Peach shifted closer, shuddering a little. Her hand shifted to his arm. A half embrace. He looked up at her, and saw the starlight in her eyes. As soon as she took in his expression, she frowned.

He couldn't look away from her. He needed her guidance, her grace. "Is this- Is this also a dream?" he asked, in a voice that was barely more than a whisper. Was this all an illusion, too? Would the wonderful dream fall away and be replaced with some harsh reality? Or was he buried under a mountain of nightmares that would never end?

As the tears threatened to fall, Peach shook her head with a solemn look. His hands trembled at his sides. He didn't move when Peach went to wrap both her arms around him. "No. This is real. This is all real," she promised him.

Mario tried desperately to keep himself together, but his shoulders shook. He couldn't breathe because of how tight his throat was. He wasn't sure if he was even the one keeping himself standing, but Peach was holding him and the contact was almost too much for him. He couldn't do it.

Peach pulled away just slightly and touched his face. "Come with me," she said, and eased him away from the railing.

She helped him trudge off the deck, inside the ship. He couldn't tell where. He kept his head down, and the tears blurred his vision. There were turns. And doors. The next thing he knew, he stumbled right into a bed, and a door was shut behind him.

He wasn't sure how he ended up crawling on the bed, but somehow he was moved right into Peach's welcoming arms, and every one of his defenses and barriers abruptly broke.

There was just too much. He choked on a sob.

"It's okay, it's okay." Peach held him through his storm, crooning softly in his ear. Her hands stroked his hair. Her arms wrapped firmly around, pressing him against her and taking the weight of his burdens. His body shook. He had been so cold and alone, but he insisted to himself that he couldn't let it all out. He had to stay strong.

But her embrace, her gentle touch, everything about her wrenched away all his inhibitions. Like the world had slipped out from underneath him. Her presence, and the knowledge that they were alone made him lose control. He found himself gasping into her. Falling into her, moving closer and closer until he swore every atom of his being had melded with her somehow.

And she held him through it all. He was safe.

"There you are," she kissed his temple over and over again, smoothing his hair back once he calmed down. He couldn't move. He didn't want to. She was so warm, and she'd wrapped a blanket around them both, and the world was stable and safe and he was moments away from drifting off into sleep. But he didn't want to.

His heart skipped a beat at the thought of sleep. He never wanted the moment to end, but he couldn't believe it was real.

"You can rest," she told him. "You can sleep here with me. You can sleep for as long as you want to."

His breathing became erratic again. He shook his head. "I don't-I can't." he answered into her shoulder. His voice was weak. "I don't want to wake up in another nightmare. This is-This has to be a dream."

She hushed him, combing her fingers through his hair before holding his face in both her hands. "Shh, it's okay." she made him look up at her, and gave him a sympathetic smile. For a long moment, she was quiet. She stroked his face with her thumb. "I promise you, this is real. Do you want me to prove it to you?"

Mario had no idea how she might do that. He took in a shaky breath, and nodded.

Leaning back into the pillows, Peach encouraged him to relax against her. She continued to hold his face. "The Shadow Queen put you to sleep as soon as you saw her true form. She had taken some damage, and she knew you could fight her even without a vessel. So, she put you to sleep, and made you dream that she hypnotized you to be under her control. But she didn't consider that I would be able to affect your dreams." she explained. "I couldn't do much. So I left messages for you. The summer solstice. I hoped you could use it to fight her. The Queen's version of our world weren't perfect, and you could tell. You found a lot of her mistakes. There was a dream where you saved me from being hanged. Do you remember that one?"

Swallowing hard, Mario nodded again. The lull of her voice was soothing in a way that he couldn't explain. He felt himself becoming sleepy.

Peach started to rub his back, up and down. Her voice was soft. "Well, it was a dream, but it was real, too. I managed to create a place for myself in that dream, hoping to communicate directly with you. I didn't realize how many dreams she had already put you through. You were very upset and tired, and...You told me something very important. I don't think that you meant for me to hear yet." she trailed off with a slight blush, and a sweet smile. "Do you remember what you told me?"

Thinking back, Mario tried to remember. He narrowed his eyes at her, searching her face for some hint. She was happy. That was all he could gather. "Nn-no." he finally mumbled. The dreams were all blending together in his mind. He couldn't remember all that he had said, or all that had happened.

She let out a breath, and closed her eyes for a moment. Her smile never left. "Well," she began, her voice falling quiet. "You told me that you had seen me die, a hundred times. And wanted to tell me something before you saw me die again. You said that you loved me."

Oh. The dream came back to Mario, and he remembered the clumsy confession with a start. His body was too tired to react with the true horror that he felt. "Oh, no." he managed to choke out, closing his eyes. He wanted to shrink away from the world. Forget he ever existed.

He was answered with soft laughter. "Oh, Mario. My sweet, sweet Mario," Peach sighed, and embraced him. He couldn't help but crack a tiny smile, listening to her laugh.

Laugh. She was laughing. Mario opened his eyes. She had never laughed in any of the dreams before. He blinked, watching her in awe. Her laughter was the most beautiful sound in the world.

"This…" he couldn't believe it. It was too good to be true. "This isn't a dream," he realized, all at once.

Princess Peach, lovely and fair Princess Peach, had pulled him out of the Shadow Queen's cruel grasp. He fought the battle and won. They were going home now, home to the Mushroom Kingdom. And his heart swelled, because Peach was there and she was laughing. She was happy. She was happy, and he loved her.

He loved her with all of his heart.

Before he knew what she was doing, she leaned forward and kissed him. His eyes fluttered closed. She kissed him, gently, carefully, for a long moment. For an eternity within an instant.

"Yes," she whispered as she pulled away, and he opened his eyes to see her beautiful smile. "This is real."

He could have cried. Instead, he gave a disbelieving laugh, and fell into her loving arms. She didn't hesitate to hold him.

With his cheek pressed into her shoulder, with her arms snug around him, he let out a sigh. He was so tired. "I love you," he said, because she had to know. Before anything else, he needed her to know.

His body was exhausted. He couldn't hold her the way he wanted to, but that was okay. She held him tight enough for the both of them. She kissed his head and rubbed his back, and the weight of the day washed over him all at once. He wondered if she knew she was putting him to sleep.

"I love you, too." she shifted until she was laying down with him. She pressed another small kiss to his forehead before she settled against the pillows.

He mumbled something sleepily, wanting to convey more. But his consciousness was already fading. He relaxed against her, drifting off.

The boat sailed through the ocean, taking them home. Free from the Shadow Queen, Mario fell asleep, and dreamed.

He dreamed of home, of sunlight streaming through the trees, and hills that rolled forever. He dreamed of a Princess who he loved, and who loved him.

They were good dreams.

O~o~O

**Happy Halloween! I've been wanting to write a story that had to do with the Shadow Queen for a long time now, but I didn't seriously mess around with any ideas until recently. The real catalyst for writing this was when I heard Lana Del Rey's rendition of Doin' Time. The tone had that perfect mix of haunting and entrancing, and it just reminded me of a romanticized version of being hypnotized. The lyrics got me, when she said "I'd like to hold her/ Head underwater," haha I was so shook when I heard that line! Like damn, took the song to a new level of dark.**

**Though that's one part of it, there are several songs that inspired this story as well. Particularly the one that shares a title, Man of War by Radiohead. I always associated that song with a dark version of Peach, and the words and tone always reminded me of a more gritty version of the Mario franchise. Where Mario is responsible for death and destruction, and the song is absolutely perfect for the ensuing chaos and internal crisis that I imagine Mario having. It's a perfect song for a thunderstorm too, it goes from just dark to absolutely chaotic. I love Radiohead hehe**

**I don't typically do dark, but I always wanted to try my hand. So here we are! I had a whole playlist of dark songs to get me through this story. I'm glad it's done in time for Halloween, but I may go back to edit more later when I'm not distracted by schoolwork.**

**Also, I've never actually played The Thousand Year Door. It took a lot of research, and I had to change my original ending to fit with the events of the game. I'd love to play it sometime, but my idea of the Dark Queen came solely from fanart and dramatic depictions of the like that I've been looking at even when I was younger. That's why it might seem like I shoved the other characters in there, because I kinda did, and I only have a slight idea of their personalities.**

**Anyway, so that's this weird story. It's pretty confusing I think, but I had a lot of fun writing it. Thanks so much for reading!**


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